Join us as we focus each day for nine weeks on a different part of 1 Corinthians 13.
Monday: Love is patient, love is kind.
TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
Be careful, however, that the exercise of your rights does not become a stumbling block to the weak. 1 Corinthians 8:9
Read: 1 Corinthians 8
Listen: 1 Corinthians 8
TODAY’S MESSAGE
Paul starts these verses by saying, “Now concerning food sacrificed to idols…” This comment is probably pretty foreign to us, but Paul is writing to a group of new Jesus-followers entrenched in a pagan temple culture. Much of the meat in the market was part of a temple feast or ritual sacrifice. They could not avoid or ignore it. There wasn’t a smartphone app to track if meat had been sacrificed to an idol or not. This new Jesus-community struggles to sort out what to do about this widespread issue. Paul addresses this but also confronts the church about the right way to be right. He reminds them it’s about responding with love to those around.
We live in a radically different culture. We will probably never eat food sacrificed to an idol. But Paul’s instruction about how to be right in the right way is just as significant to us. This week, we will explore what it means to be right, to be confused and to be family both in the early Jesus-community and our lives today. Paul’s primary concern is the growth of the believers, and he challenges us to be concerned about each other’s growth.
As Jesus-followers, we should open our eyes to the truth that our actions affect others. We’re ten days away from Thanksgiving and the start of the holiday season. We will unavoidably be in situations where we disagree with others. One way we can be right in the right way and respond to others well is through the habits of love.
IN YOUR CHAIR TIME TODAY
Think about moving your Habits of Love Challenge bookmark and card. It has likely become so familiar that it is invisible. Where can you put it that will cause you to stop to reflect on it at the beginning and end of your day? Ask God to help you continue the challenge and develop the habits of love in you.
Click on the photo below to “save image as” to set for the lock screen or home screen on your mobile device to cycle back to each phrase twice daily to remember to live a life motivated by love.
Download a printable PDF of the BTW week here.
